Event Details

Event Description

July 16, 2013Updated Jul 16, 2013 at 9:06 AM EST

Two area businesses that provide services to children with autism are partnering with local host Jessica Gerardot to promote a unique documentary film about autism that is coming to Fort Wayne. The exclusive showing of “The United States of Autism” is scheduled to run on Thursday, August 8, from 7 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. at the Carmike 20 theatre located at 3930 East Dupont Road, just east of I-69 in northern Allen County.

“ ‘The United States of Autism’ is a ‘must-see’ movie for anyone whose life is affected by autism,” according to Lisa Compton, the owner of Second Steps, LLC, and the CEO of SensoryCritters.com, local companies that specialize in services and therapeutic products for those with special needs. The documentary records the 40-day journey of Pennsylvania father Richard Everts as he travels 11,000 miles across the U.S. to visit 20 families and individuals who are affected by autism. His original goal was to search for answers for his own son Tommy, who has autism. “What I found is far greater than any one man’s story, and now I understand that it can only be told in this place called America,” Evert said in a trailer for the film.

“The United States of Autism” is the product of The Tommy Foundation, a not-for-profit organization named after Evert’s son whose mission is “Embracing Families with Autism.” The Tommy Foundation was the recipient of a $50,000 grant from The Pepsi Refresh project to help create this film, which was produced by Daniel Sokola and features a music track by Graham Colton.

The August 8 showing at the Carmike 20 was arranged by Gerardot, a local parent of a child with autism. The local showing will be “sensory friendly” in order to make it more comfortable for people with autism to attend, according to Compton. She points out that autism is often accompanied by sensory-processing disorders that make it difficult for affected individuals to be in a pitch-black room and/or in the presence of loud sounds. In a sensory-friendly movie, the sound is turned down and the lighting increased slightly, she said.

Tickets are $10 per person and can be ordered through the Tugg event website at www.tugg.com/events/4574. A preview trailer of the movie is also available through this link. For more information on The Tommy Foundation, visit its website at www.tommyland.org.

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